Date Night
I've seen other authors do this, and figured it's probably a good idea. This entire series is based on a Tumblr post that asked the question "What would you do if you woke up as your WoW toon?" I took it one step further and asked "What would happen if Everyone that ever played WoW woke up as their main (most played) character?"
We're ignoring the mass hysteria, clinical studies, lawsuits, and other nonsense that the real world would react with, and assuming that the mundane populace notices, but mostly doesn't seem to care much about the changelings.
Getting dressed to go grocery shopping was a drag; cut-offs, a loose tank top, flip-flops and Wayfarers was a dressed up as I was getting. Pauli opted for Bermies and a Polo shirt...with flip-flops and Wayfarers. Keeping my mind on what we'd be doing later made the trip to the supermarket bearable. We picked up what we needed and hurried home to get some of the longer prep time items going. Sweet potatoes wrapped in foil and started baking - check. Broccoli cut up and ready to steam - check. Pork ribs separated into manageable portions - check. And with what was left of the time before the Bartender showed up, I whipped up some tasty cupcakes. Another in-game recipe that makes you happy.
The Bartender arrived looking very professional. Her black pencil skirt hugged her curves, and the cream colored blouse she had paired with it was only buttoned enough to maintain propriety in the work-place. Pauli let her in and they kissed their hellos while I put the ribs together. Ordinarily, the prep time for ribs would be very long with the rub, the low heat baking, and the making of the sauce from the drippings. But, I didn't have to go through that. The in-game recipes took less than a minute per serving to put together, as long as I had a cooking fire/stove/pot, I could make food that not only nourished the body, but also gave the person eating the food extra stamina, and raised their spirits!
"What smells so good?" asked the Bartender as she followed her nose into the kitchen.
"Everything" I replied, as I plated the last of the food.
"Wow" she said, "you two must have slaved away at this all day."
"Not quite" said Pauli, "we only just picked up the fixin's about an hour ago."
She looked at the ribs on the plate with skepticism and then looked at me. I just shrugged.
"That's how the magic works sometimes" I said.
We sat around the table and chatted as we ate. I could see when the effects of the food hit them. Pauli was expecting it, so it wasn't a big surprise to him. The Bartender, on the other hand, really had no idea that the ribs we were feeding her would do anything other than fill her belly.
"Woah" she said, when the food buff hit, "I feel...different...better!"
She looked at the two of us with narrowed eyes, "You two didn't slip me anything did you?"
"No" I responded, "not exactly, anyway. The food you're eating is from an in-game recipe, it provides a stamina and spirit buff."
"Meaning?" she asked.
Pauli answered "Meaning you can 'go' for longer and feel better about doing it."
The Bartender looked at me again.
I nodded, "Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. And we have cupcakes for desert - they make you happy."
We finished dinner, and the Bartender started asking questions about what other in-game things would affect mundane humans.
"You could make so much money selling stuff like this, it would put a lot of pharmaceutical companies out of business" she said.
"I think the presence of magical healing in the world is already doing that" I replied, but I filed the thought away for future reference.
We adjourned to the couch with full glasses of wine and high spirits.
"I don't think we're following the three beer rule tonight" I said.
"Probably not" replied the Bartender, raising her glass "I don't see any reason to drink anything else when I'm already feeling so fucking good!"
Pauli nodded and smiled "You should have been here earlier, I got to sample a taste of Eni's herbal supplements!"
"Is that what you kids are calling it these days" she said, grinning wickedly.
"I mean, I sampled some of that, too" replied Pauli, "but I'm literally talking about stuff she mixes up using weeds and magic."
"It's not magic" I corrected him, "it's Alchemy, and they're not 'weeds' they're Herbs."
"Isn't Alchemy turning lead into gold?" asked the Bartender.
"Iron" I said, "with the knowledge I have I can turn iron into gold, not lead."
"So that's where your money comes from!" said Pauli.
"Some of it" I said, "the rest shall remain my own
personal